Few companies have risen as fast as employment agency Kelly Group in the Top Empowerment Companies (TEC) rankings. It only listed on the JSE in April 2007 but has climbed to fourth spot on the overall rankings.
It now sits only one spot behind rival staff placement company Adcorp. Kelly comes in with a score of 82,28% in the overall rankings, which is behind Adcorp's 88,71% but ahead of Glenrand MIB's 79,06%, in third place.
Kelly scores 15,03% for ownership, 19,23% for black participants on its board, 15% on employment equity and 17,11% for preferential procurement. It is an AA-rated empowerment company. This means its clients can claim back 110% of their procurement from Kelly in their own empowerment credentials.
It is 10,91% owned by Brait Private Equity, while empowerment group Safika has an 18,77% holding. Safika also holds a further 10% in partnership with Ditkeni, and Old Mutual has a 10,54% stake.
Apart from its black ownership, Kelly has managed to get some leading black empowerment players involved in the running of the company. Safika executive chairman Moss Ngoasheng is also Kelly's chairman, while Mthunzi Mdwaba has been appointed deputy CE - he joined the board as an executive director. It is headed by Grenville Wilson.
Kelly's not only a transformed business, it is also a successful one. Revenue rose 12% to R2,2bn; operating profit increased 28% to R146,9m; and headline earnings jumped 30% from 78,46c to 102,3c per share in its figures for the year to end-September 2008.
It managed to shrug off a softening economy in the second half of the year to push up margins from 5,8% to 6,6%.
Kelly is apparently not only good at finding people work, it is also a good place to be employed. It was named runner-up in Deloitte's Best Company to Work For rankings in the small business category and winner in the business and professional services category.
It may have only recently become a listed company but its corporate governance controls have been recognised in being named the "Fledging Winner" for its annual report in the Annual Report Awards 2008.
It has also won several international awards, such as the American Staffing Association Care Award in 2008 and the World Contact Centre Gold Award.
Not bad for a 40-year-old.
